Fr Dwight Longenecker on 'What's Wrong With the Church?'

By Fr Dwight Longenecker
9/26/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

The biggest fault of conservative Catholics is that we often come across as cranky old complainers. Life's too short. Be happy in Jesus

On my blog readers had been grumbling about the state of the Catholic Church and one of them asked me what they could do about it. The first thing to do is to develop an attitude shift. Instead of blaming everybody else I should blame myself. Accepting the blame has the wonderful double effect of confounding one's enemies, and helping one to nurture that most elusive of virtues: humility.

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GREENVILLE, SC (Catholic Online) -You know the old story about G.K.Chesterton: There was a series of articles and letters in the paper about what was wrong with the world. So he wrote to the editor,

"Dear Sir,

What is wrong with the world?

I am,

Yours Sincerely,
G.K.Chesterton.

The same might be answered about 'What's wrong with the Church?" On my blog readers had been grumbling about the state of the Catholic Church and one of them asked me what they could do about it. The first thing to do is to develop an attitude shift.

Instead of blaming everybody else I should blame myself. Accepting the blame has the wonderful double effect of confounding one's enemies, and helping one to nurture that most elusive of virtues: humility.

There seems to be an awful lot of grumbling about the Church from both liberal and conservative Catholics. The conservatives don't like liturgical abuses. They grumble about folk masses and brutal modern American Catholic architecture. If you're a grumbling conservative have you ever stopped to consider that the progressives grumble just about as much as you do?

The progressives complain about "this conservative, reactionary papal regime and the misogynistic, corrupt hierarchy and the medieval anti democratic bishops." The conservatives think the progressives are wrong and the progressives are just as convinced the conservatives are killing the church. No matter what side you're on, what are you going to do about it? The first thing we can do about it is stop complaining so much and be a bit more philosophical.

When you read church history you come to realize that the church has always been troubled with corruption from within and persecution from without. In different ages the corruption from within has taken different forms. There has been sexual scandal, financial corruption, heterodoxy, complacency, worldliness, liturgical abuse, bad music and all sorts of other troubles in just about every age.

You only have to read the New Testament to find the apostles criticizing the various churches for their inconsistency, false teaching, immorality and unfaithfulness. I shouldn't worry about it too much. It's all part of being Catholic because it's all part of being human.

The most ordinary source of disappointment in life is having the wrong expectations to start with. If you thought it was going to be all marvelous and to your liking in the Catholic Church you had the wrong expectation in the first place. If you thought all the bishops and priests were going to be perfectly moral, upstanding, totally orthodox saints you were suffering from a major delusion. If you thought every parish would be straight down the line and have wonderful liturgy, saintly pastors, fine music, exemplary architecture and all the rest, you misunderstood. Correct your expectations and you won't be so disappointed.

My advice is, "Stop whining and get on with it." Be positive. There's far more that's good in the modern Catholic Church than bad. There may be some priests who celebrate the Mass irreverently, but I haven't met too many. Sometimes the music, the servers, the reverence of the people or the architecture is lacking, but it's often made up for by a real sense of love and community service.

In addition to all the good work in most parishes, there are also many, many other wonderful things in the Catholic Church. Consider all the apostolates, the good religious orders, the missionary work. Sure they're not all perfect, but look to the heart. See people where they really are. Understand their longings and aspirations. Know that they want to love and serve God. They can't help it if they have been poorly catechized and are victims of the culture they live in. See what's positive about the people and customs you don't like. Cut people a break, and remember the golden rule.

That being said, there are also many practical things people can do within their own parishes and dioceses to make things better. First, support your parish priest. Be his right hand. Help him out. Be his friend. Pray for him. Love him. When he knows your love and support is genuine, then he'll take you seriously when you offer constructive criticism. If he's doing something you don't like, instead of criticizing him negatively, go and ask him why he does this or that. If it is a minor matter let it slide. If he's consciously deviating from the teaching of the church or the rubrics, then do your homework, ask him about it with respect-- gently and with tact. Do you like to be criticized for something you're supposedly good at? I don't think so. Neither does he. Don't write a letter to the bishop. Do you know how many letters like that he must get every week?

If you want something changed in the parish, get involved and work for ...

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1 - 8 of 8 Comments

Celia
7 months ago
Abbey you are right Let not the Church live the world but the world live the Church. Problem is with Vat II it's the church live the world. Much as I like to help out at the church there's too much politics, back stabbing & favourtisim going on so I gave up. It's tough love I know but I'm not made of wood. I step back when I'm not appreciated, much as it's true we do it for love of God, even Jesus must have been disappointed when he cured the 10 lepers & only 1 turned back to thank him. Since when does saying thank you to someone personally cost a dime. It doesn't yet people as well as priests find it hard to do. I'm a Catholid for love of Jesus & my faith but it's a long hard road to walk at times.
rafaelmarie
7 months ago
I SEE NO UNITY AGAINST ABORTION.

THEY ONLY WAY THAT WE CAN DEFEAT OBAMA IS BY EXCOMMUNICATING ANY AND ALL VOTERS WHO VOTE FOR OBAMA!

I FEAR THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN.

HOWEVER, WE MAY BE ACCOUNTABLE TO GOD IN OUR PRIVATE JUDGEMENT DUE TO THE FOLLOWING:

VOTING FOR A PRO-ABORTION CANDIDATE IS A MORTAL SIN.

IF YOU GO TO COMMUNION IN THAT STATE, IT IS ANOTHER AND MORE SEVERE MORTAL SIN, SACRILEGE.

BOTH OF THE AFOREMENTIONED SINS, ARE SINS OF COMMISSION.

AND NOW TO THE SIN OF OMISSION:

IF THE CLERGY DOES NOT MAKE THIS POIGNANTLY CLEAR TO THE LAITY, THEY MAY THEMSELVES MAY BE SINNING EVEN MORE SEVERELY, ESPECIALLY IF THEY GIVE THE LAITY COMMUNION IN THAT STATE?

THEY ALSO NEED TO INFORM ANYONE WHO VOTED FOR OBAMA TO REPENT AND CONFESS THEN THEY CAN RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNION.

HOWEVER, IF YOU THINK YOU CAN PLAN TO VOTE FOR OBAMA AND THEN GO TO CONFESSION TO BE FORGIVEN, THIS MAY BE SINNING AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT, WHICH IS AN UNFORGIVABLE SIN. AND IF IT IS SINNING AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT, THEN THIS HAS TO BE MADE POIGNANTLY CLEAR TO THE LAITY BY THE CLERGY, ALSO.

BUT REMEMBER, ALL THIS IS ALL EXACERBATED BY THE FACT THE HHS MANDATE FORCING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH TO PAY FOR ABORTIONS AND ABORTIFACIENTS, AND WE MAY BE OBLIGATED BY CANON LAW TO PROTECT THE CHURCH.

THIS ALL MAY HAVE TO BE DONE BY SOME SORT OF SERIOUS PROCLAMATION BY THE HOLY FATHER IN UNION WITH ALL THE BISHOPS OF THE UNITED STATES?

OTHERWISE, MAY GOD HAVE MERCY ON ALL OF OUR SOULS.

CONSIDER YOURSELVES WARNED!!!
JoAnn
7 months ago
Emma: Learning about our awesome Faith is a lifetime journey. Trust me, I'm in my 70's and I still learn wonderful things about our Faith. May the Holy Spirit guide your journey. God bless.
Marily
7 months ago
Dear Emma

May God shower his blessings upon you. Unfortunately you just provided an example of the very point us old people are trying to make. Back in the day children were taught the catechism of the faith and by the time they received confirmation KNEW the teachings of the church. The point of the sacrament is that Catholics receive the blessings of the Holy Spirit that will allow them to live that faith with the help of God and his sacraments. Most young and old catholics today see the role of the church to help them become better people. That is not what the Church is calling us to. She wants us to be saints, to be holy, right here, right now. Please read the catechism and take it to heart. Be the change that God wants you to be.
Jim
7 months ago
I think the issue with older conservatives is that they made distributed the faith like it came off an assembly line. I am in my early 20's and I find nothing wrong with a conservative perspective per se. I do think however that many conservatives are unsuccessful at putting "the breath of life" into their faith though. Ok you have this long list of things to do and not do but what does it mean to you personally? How do the aesthetics of what you preach make you feel? It is often just fire and brimstone without ever talking about what that "fire and brimstone" really means. You have to give life to the practices and doctrines you live by!

The problem with liberals is their ego (age old Adam and Eve problem). They think they know everything and a few degrees of "higher education" gives them authority to tell the rest of us what is best for us. In my experience liberals are also easily exploited emotionally. I know a priest that is all for helping poor people in third world countries but is reluctant to do programing or even talk about the unborn which Mother Theressa called the "poorest of poor." In this case I think it stems from a family member of his who is homeless and who refuses to be helped. I'm sure it is hard to live with the knowledge someone close to you is poor and you can't help them but sometimes that is how it is. Needless to say the priest I speak of has a favorable view of Obama and the Democrats because "they help the poor."
John Baysson
7 months ago
Very good article. But you are forgetting that not every priest is willing to be corrected. The ones who do engage in some sort of abuse (liturgy/faith/child) are usually those who do it with full knowledge that it is WRONG.

Usually all priests are very ready to brush off comments from the Laity as "you don't know how this works" etc. Lets also not forget that some priests do not even bother about theology or doctrine to begin with. There is only one mantra in their book "love". The definition of "love" that they have chosen is a secular notion as well.

So as far as the priests who do wrong, they do it by thinking God commissioned them to do just that. Every voice against them, at times even the church, is viewed as obstacles for God working through them.

Therefore, I am not so sure about the practicality and effectiveness of what you have given as advice.
Emma
7 months ago
Thank you for this. I'd just like to add that it's difficult, to say the least, for people in my age group (late teens/early twenties) to consistently hear of all that is wrong with our church since Vatican II. This is the only church we know. At times makes us wonder if we truly belong when we hear that we're not "properly catechised", not fully formed in the faith. When older members wax nostalgic, well, I'm thinking of the "good old days " more like the year 2000! As for not being "fully formed ", cut us a break. How many people are done learning at 19??? "Be the change you want to see " is what I understand this to say. Sounds good to me : )
abey
7 months ago
But then Jesus Christ living on earth as man in the fulness proved that the Church need not live with inconsistency, false teachings, Immorality & unfaithfulness as also Echoed by the Apostles, in trying to conform to the false standards of this world, to the understanding "Let not the Church live the world, but the world live The Church". The Problem is less of Conservatism & more of Liberalism, with the word of God taken too lightely contrary to the words of St. Jude "Contend for the Faith". This is called complacency to the faith leading to the falling away causing the unrestriction of Iniquity by itself, that which is to lawlessness, for "Sin is the lawlessness" all together concentrated in its Pinnacle of the one "The Gay Culture" (totally against the the very purpose of Creation to the Family of God) in its enforcement, for there never was a sin so utterly destroyed by God, the iniquity that has been at work, even hidden, all too clearly seen today, confirming to the Prophecy of St. Paul, to the revelation of the man of Sin, the son of Perdition, the Evil that comes through the Apostasy in the Complacency to the faith, the Faith that which was once delivered unto the Saints.

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